08TBILISI757, STATUS OF TOPURIA, OKRUASHVILI, AND BATIASHVILI

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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 TBILISI 000757
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR EUR/CARC
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUMKDEMGG
SUBJECT: STATUS OF TOPURIA, OKRUASHVILI, AND BATIASHVILI
TRIALS
REF: A. 2007 TBILISI 2484
¶B. TBILISI 385
¶C. TBILISI 141
¶1. (SBU) Summary: On April 29 the Tbilisi Appellate court
announced that it upholds the guilty verdicts for the
thirteen defendants tried in the Giorgadze treason cases.
The announcement generated little public or media attention.
On April 23, Georgian media announced that France granted
asylum to Irakli Okruashvili although France has made no
decision yet regarding his extradition. Okruashvili was
tried in Tbilisi in absentia and on March 28 the Tbilisi City
court found him guilty of large scale extortion and sentenced
him to 11 years imprisonment. Article 42, an NGO whose
lawyers represent accused in the European Human Rights Court
(ECHR), announced on April 21 that Irakli Batiashvili's case
would go forward to the ECHR and he will be represented by an
international team to include lawyers from the U.K.
Batiashvili was pardoned on January 11, 2008. Currently, he
is running in Tbilisi's Nadzaladevi District on the
Republican ticket during the May 21 Parliamentary elections.
End Summary.
Giorgadze Defendants' Sentences Stand
-------------------------------------
¶2. (SBU) On April 29 the Tbilisi Appellate court announced
that it would uphold the finding of guilty passed by the
first instance court with regard to the defendants in the
Giorgadze case. Maia Topuria, the niece of Giorgadze, was
one of the thirteen defendants involved in the appeal
process. The appeal hearing started nearly six weeks ago and
was sparsely attended by family and friends and OSCE Human
Rights representatives. Notably absent was press, although
the court was also open to press. Observers present at the
hearing said that Topuria's lawyers intend to appeal to the
Supreme Court. Pending the Supreme Court appeal, which does
not involve a hearing, but rather a paperwork review, the
next step would be to appeal the case to the European Court
of Human Rights (ECHR) in Strasbourg. The average wait time
for cases at the ECHR is three to five years. Topuria and
the other twelve defendants were found guilty of treason and
sentenced to imprisonment in August 2007 (reftel A).
Okruashvili--France Grants Asylum
-----------------------------------
¶3. (SBU) Georgian media reported on April 23 that Irakli
Okruashvili was granted asylum in France, but the French
court has yet to make a decision about his extradition.
Those watching the case speculate that he will not be
extradited back to Georgia because it would bad publicity for
the current administration in the middle of the Parliamentary
election campaign. Okruashvili was tried in absentia and
found guilty of large-scale extortion on March 28 in Tbilisi
and sentenced to 11 years imprisonment. His party, part of
the United Opposition Council, continues to run in the
Parliamentary Elections. Okruashvili was last in the public
eye on March 6, in a live broadcast from Paris, where he was
very critical of the government's actions regarding Abkhazia
(reftel B).
Batiashvili--Off to the ECHR
----------------------------
¶4. (SBU) NGO Article 42 announced on April 21 that
Batiashvili's case, which was filed with the ECHR while he
was still imprisoned last year, will go forward. His counsel
will be an eclectic group made up of Georgian and
international lawyers, including counsel from the U.K.
Batiashvili who was arrested in 2006, and released by a
Presidential pardon on January 11, 2008, has steadfastly
denied his guilt, saying he never requested a pardon.
According to Batiashvili's lawyer, Natia Katsitadze, the
implications of a pardon imply guilt according to Georgian
National Criminal Law and the Presidential Decree which
grants the pardon. Lawyers for Batiashvili point out that
only by going to the ECHR can the mark of guilt be
permanently erased from his case file. The Supreme Court did
review the Batiashvili case on January 28, 2008, but
suspended the case without issuing any finding. On another
note, a finding from the ECHR in Batiashvili's favor could
open the door to monetary compensation for wrongful
imprisonment (reftel C).
Comment
--------
¶5. (SBU) Post reported incorrectly (ref C) in January that
TBILISI 00000757 002 OF 002
Batiashvili was granted amnesty. In fact, he was pardoned.
TEFFT

The information recorded on this site has been extracted from http://Wikileaks.org (Georgia) database..

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